Cat Crib - Tan

When you buy something for your cat, you wonder, "Am I a total idiot? What if my cat turns up his wet, furry little nose at this?" Well, I wondered the same thing. A cat crib? You gotta be kidding! Sure, it looks cute--all those potentially posed photos of cats lounging luxuriously in their posh, kitty-sized hammocks. No way will this work. But guess what? Not only do my cats LOVE it. They more or less duke it out--who can claim the cat crib first. And yes, b'gosh, it's cute. Cats just know if something is for them--something which they actually like--and this is it. One cat is chunky (20 pounds!) and one is skinny (eight pounds) and they both adore it.

First impression review: just arrived and I quickly learned that the cat crib slips down on chair legs that are smooth and don't have a design to stop it from sliding down. I improvised and used heavy duty picture frame hanging wire to strap over the chair to keep it from sliding down. I still need to tweak the wires as you will see from the pictures. I made sure to have it sit low to the floor in case my adjustments fail, he won't be hurt. Cat's first impression: as soon as I showed it to him, he couldn't climb in fast enough, he seems to love it! He's a big boy at 18lbs and fits fine with a little over flow but he doesn't mind. Overall I am happy with this, it's soft on the inside and seems sturdy on the outside. So far so good.

After reading several reviews on this and similar products, I reluctantly ordered one. Our chairs have a very sleek finish, so I was expecting to have to do all sorts of tinkering in order to prevent this from slipping. To my great surprise, it hasn't moved at all since I installed it a few weeks ago (I followed the instructions and used both hands to reeealy tighten it).Both of our (12-ish Lbs) cats LOVE this thing, so much so that they now fight over it. That has gotten so out of control I ordered another one today. Sigh.

My cats might be, well, how should I say, NOT MENSA candidates. So bear this in mind...The reviews for this product are consistently high so imagine my surprise when my two guys steered clear. Despite enticements including treats and catnip my cattos were leery. Until I lowered the hammock to the point in which the bottom touched the floor underneath, my cats seemed either terrified or totally confused. But lowering did the trick. It seems that my guys needed a little terra firma to feel safe (See photo above). Once they got the confidence to jump in (rather than stepping in) I raised the hammock up a little, which they now really seem to enjoy. They can "hide" a little but still keep an eye on all goings on. Great product.

I originally purchased this product because I like to conceal our cat products (as not many are very fashionable in the home), and to give our two house cats more surface area to lounge on. We live in a small apartment, so sometimes I have to get creative when it comes to creating special spaces for our cats to get a little privacy (especially in a two cat home). This cat hammock has addressed all of these concerns.It has been a few months since purchasing the Cat Crib, and I can say with confidence: that our cats have been in love with this product from the moment we pulled it out of the box. The cat hammock is almost always occupied by one of our two cats at any given point during the day; you would be hard pressed to find it without a sleeping cat nestled inside its fleece interior. Our cats did need a little encouragement to use the product at first. To help our two cats understand the concept of the Cat Crib my husband and I took turns placing each cat inside the hammock. Afterwards, we left a little bit of cat nip (or some other treat your cat prefers) on the Cat Crib, which enticed the cats to crawl inside. If the cats ever ate the treat with their back feet on the ground, we simply gave them a little boost into the cat hammock.For a cat product, it is fairly discrete and generic looking (as oppose to flamboyant or offensive to the eyes, as many cat products are). We purchased the Cat Crib in black, both to conceal fur, and to be as unobtrusive in the home environment as possible. However, the Cat Crib is produced in a "Neutral" and "Purple" if a pop of color is what you desire. The Cat Crib is a great alternative to a traditional cat bed that clutters up floor space, since the cat hammock hangs beneath furniture; Our cats prefer this, as it gives them a bit more of a feeling of privacy and concealment. And because the cat hammock is situated above the ground, it has been easy to vacuum underneath (no picking a cat bed up off the floor to clean).Inside the Cat Crib box you will find the cat hammock and four plastic buckles. The Cat Crib has two sides: a soft fleece side for kitty, and a more durable fabric underneath. The Cat Crib comes with no included instructions, aside from a short explanation of assembly on the backside of the box. I'm embarrassed to admit just how long it took my husband and I to figure out how to properly thread the velcro straps through the buckles, and adhere the cat hammock to a piece of furniture. But after a little fussing with the product and trial and error, we ultimately were successful in assembling the Cat Crib.The Cat Crib straps are designed so that they will not slip down furniture legs; However, it should be noted that our cats are on the petite side, weighing around 12 pounds each (for larger cats, slippage may be an issue). That being said, this product will not work on just any piece of furniture. The Cat Crib only fits under larger pieces of four-legged furniture; Our cat hammock is currently located beneath a small dining room table, measuring approx. 23" between table legs. The Cat Crib website has measurement estimates of 17" - 27" between furniture legs, for proper fit of the product.The Cat Crib website also states that their cat hammocks are washing machine safe (a must for any pet product), however, we have yet to attempt cleaning ours (and there are no care instruction tags to be found on the cat hammock, or the Cat Crib website).Overall, I would say the Cat Crib is a great alternative (or addition) to a traditional cat bed. It has held up fabulously after regular daily use, been easy to clean around (and hopefully easy to clean), discrete in the home, and most important: is a beloved space for our cats to relax.